


Immortals Revealed

by jtt



Category: Highlander - All Media Types, Highlander: The Series
Genre: Gen, Immortals, Press and Tabloids, TV News, Watchers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-14
Updated: 2020-12-14
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:22:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,670
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28064649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jtt/pseuds/jtt
Summary: That second backup Watcher CD on the bookstore shelf was long overdue to cause trouble. The secret of Immortals is exposed to the world...
Comments: 9
Kudos: 44
Collections: Highlander Holiday ShortCuts 2020





	Immortals Revealed

**Author's Note:**

  * For [calime](https://archiveofourown.org/users/calime/gifts).



The French news networks ran the story first by virtue of receiving a Watcher CD backup that no one knew still existed at the main TF1 studio. The serious and smartly dressed news anchor read his lines faithfully as they were given to him for the report, his face giving away nothing about what he personally thought of the story.

“Troubling news tonight about an old compact disc containing a list of what is believed to be a partial decoding of a massive criminal network or perhaps a dossier of criminal customers. Inside each file is a list of categories: known aliases, base of operations, but the most disturbing category of all is...  _ confirmed kills _ .

“Who did they kill? We do not know. Names of victims are not listed. Neither do they mention where or when the acts were committed, only that each person is credited with a number...

“We have as yet identified only a few of the thousands of names on the disc. Four particularly well-known criminals who have tormented Paris... some recently, others more than five years ago.”

Images of Immortals of the criminal persuasion begin to line up across the screen as the reporter named each of them.

“Antonius Kalas.”

Kalas' mug shot from his stint in a French prison featured a creepy sneer on the screen.

“Convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison, he escaped in 1994. No trace of him has been found since and he is believed to have fled the country. We are pleased to reveal additional aliases to aid Interpol in their search. The disc gives Kalas a staggering 203 confirmed kills.

“Amanda Montrose.”

In addition to a previous arrest photo, they actually played old video footage from a security camera of her breaking into a building.

“This lovely woman has three other surnames: Darieux, LeFauve and DuPar. She is wanted internationally for stealing jewels and occasionally art. Though never connected to any deaths in her heists, her file credits her with 64 kills. We are very concerned that such a high number of 'kills' could go entirely overlooked in such a well known criminal.

“Xavier St. Cloud and Morgan D'Estaing.”

A screen grab from a security camera and another prison mug shot were added to the screen.

“A duo, also jewel thieves, with more deadly reputations and all of us may breathe a sigh of relief that this pair are both already deceased. Known to use poison gas to slaughter store patrons in broad daylight, Xavier St. Cloud was suspected of murdering at least two more men on separate occasions. His body was found decapitated inside his own home in 1994. His file credits him with 164 kills. If that number is accurate, then I can only wonder at his assassin's own kill count.

“Described in the files as St. Cloud's student, Morgan D'Estaing used his teacher's mode of operations and even his surname as an alias at times. He, too, employed poison gas to murder witnesses as he robbed jewelry stores. The file lists 34 kills for him. He hung himself in prison in 1996.”

The news then moved on to the next story consisting of information about the best places in Paris to view the midnight fireworks display. The television went mostly unnoticed by the numerous patrons inside Joe's Le Blues Bar celebrating the upcoming new year. The notable exception were three Immortals and one mortal sitting at a table in the corner, their laughter and camaraderie of the evening now forgotten.

“I can't go back to my flat,” Amanda finally stated as she nervously turned up her collar, trying to hide her face from the crowd. “I'm using the DuPar name again.”

“Joe?” Duncan said, concerned, but stopped when he saw Joe was already on the phone.

What Joe said next into the phone answered Duncan’s question anyway, “Whoever leaked this didn't give them everything. Those photos are from the police, not our database.”

“I cannot believe,” Amanda whispered, annoyed, “they keep track of how many heads we've taken.”

“Well, they do,” Duncan replied reluctantly.

“They got mine wrong,” she retorted, sounding a little miffed.

“Yes, it is wrong,” Joe said as an aside to Amanda and into his phone said, “The reporter’s information is out of date.”

“Methos?” Duncan said quietly looking over at the oldest Immortal who still had not spoken up.

“Must be another backup CD Don made,” concluded Methos with a sigh. 

Sounding mostly stunned, Duncan asked, “You said you didn't know Don Salzer made one back up disc, am I supposed to believe he made two? Did Salzer's wife Christine make a copy of the disc? Did Kalas?” 

Methos shrugged. “The text is what is seen on the 'opening bio page' for each Immortal, no more. There should be better photos than that. None of those pictures were taken by Watchers,” Methos said. “Are you still using an alias, Mac?”

“Yes,” was Duncan's tired reply.

“Then Amanda can hide out with you.”

Duncan shook his head. “I was staying with her. I just put the barge in dry dock yesterday. You know how the Seine floods this time of year. We'll get a hotel.”

“How?” asked Amanda. “It’s New Year’s Eve. There are no flights or hotel vacancies to be had and trains are packed.”

“You are welcome to stay here in the bar,” Joe offered as he put down his phone. “My staff and I won’t have time to keep it open while dealing with this mess.”

“Thanks, Joe,” said Duncan. “But perhaps we should get out of town. Methos? What about you?”

“No one can connect Don's disc to me and I'm not Adam Pierson anymore. Besides, as you said, everything is booked and I don't want to miss my flight in two days. You could go by car,” he suggested. “Book a hotel outside the city.”

“And be recognized at a petrol station? No thanks,” grumbled Amanda. “Here until this all blows over.”

Joe nodded her direction as his phone rang again.   


As it was midday across the Atlantic, the American news reporters enthusiastically dug up more than the disc alone offered. As Kalas had once threatened Duncan, CNN did indeed broadcast pictures and information about Immortals. The only mercy was the actual word 'Immortal' was not yet used.

One of the news anchors at the desk seemed uncertain if someone had swapped New Year’s Eve for April Fool's Day while the other looked intensely interested after they summarized the French report.

“All of the files have a 1993 creation date and there are  _ thousands _ of them. Viewing the list is much like looking at a phone directory, there are so many names. Some are downright bizarre and many have no last name at all. We don't know for certain what all the numbers mean, but one is pretty obvious... c _ onfirmed kills.  _ I am not exaggerating here people. Every entry has a number and though a few are zero, it still gives me the chills. That zero could just mean “hasn't killed  _ yet,”  _ she said before addressing her fellow anchor. “Sam?”

Sam began speaking on cue, “Is this Killer List literally names of thousands of serial killers? If so, then who are all these people they've killed and why haven't we heard about them before? Or have we heard about some of them already? Even spread out all over the world, thousands – maybe tens of thousands - of deaths wouldn't go unnoticed. 

“At first, we thought the numbers could be codes for something else, not killing people per se. But many names on the list are of people who were involved in suspicious deaths and others are actual convicted murderers. It is a massive undertaking to read these files. I expect we'll exhaust ourselves trying over the next few days. I don't envy your task of locating addresses on some of these people, Jenna.”

“It’s been a bear, Sam, and my team hasn't even scratched the surface. Some familiar sounding names caught our attention. Turns out a few of them have a 'base of operations' or 'affiliation' here in the US.”

“Our first file,” interjected Jenna, “sounds like the lead singer for the band  _ Lord Byron and the Undead _ who was tragically murdered backstage at his own concert in 1997 just a day after a fan’s suspicious suicide jump from Byron’s rooftop. This guy is all written up as if he was both the real poet from the 1800s and also the rock star.”

“Is that pretentious or what?” asked Sam rhetorically. “Take a look at what we found.”

Two images filled the screen. A Regency era painting of the poet and a modern photograph of the singer that bore a strong, but not perfect resemblance to the old portrait. The pictures were followed by an image of the file itself.

_ George Gordon Noel Byron _

_ Known Aliases: Lord Byron, George Rochdale, James Morrison _

_ Born: 1788; England _

_ First Death: 1815; suicide _

_ First Teacher: Dr. Benjamin Adams _

_ Original Cultural Affiliation: English _

_ Recent Base of Operations: Los Angeles, CA USA _

_ Occupation: Singer, Lord Byron and the Undead _

_ Status: active _

_ Confirmed Kills: 9 _

_ Watcher: Germaine Scott _

“I gotta admit, the pictures do favor each other,” commented Sam. “Looks a bit like Jim Morrison, too. You know from  _ The Doors _ .”

“Those numbers can't be years,” Jenna concluded, going back to her earlier statement, “but that doesn't mean they aren't dates. They could be as simple as the number of days these individuals participated. Each of the four digits could be a separate classification. Most of the files' first two numbers lead with a number one followed by three more numbers, but not all of them. Some have only two or three digits total. It's a mystery, folks.”

“We're pretty sure they aren't a roster number like James Bond's 007, though,” said Sam. “Some of the files have the same 'born' numbers and others have identical 'first death' numbers. It is possible the word 'born' indicates membership. Could it be rank or seniority? Not all of these guys have the same number. Perhaps those who do are from group inductions or first kill participation? Most of the names are unique, but not necessarily famous. When they use a real deceased celebrity's name, could it be a status indicator?”

“Possibly. And to continue our theme of famous names...”

The image of the reporters was again replaced with a new screen grab of one of the files. It flashed briefly on the television before certain lines were enlarged to emphasize them.

_ Carl Robinson _

_ Known Aliases: Carl Washington, Carl Jefferson _

_ Born: 1824; New Orleans, LA, USA _

_ First Death: 1859; wrongly killed by slave master _

_ First Teacher: Matthew McCormick _

_ Original Cultural Affiliation: American _

_ Recent Base of Operations: Seacouver, WA USA  _

_ Occupation: minor league baseball player _

_ Status: active _

_ Confirmed Kills: 27 _

_ Watcher: Arnold Pane _

“This file caught my colleague's attention in the list, Sam is a huge baseball fan, aren't you, Sam? Anyway, a man named Carl Robinson, a baseball star, was in fact accused of murder and died in a shootout with the FBI in 1996. This man’s file has the same name, is a minor league baseball player, listed having 27 kills, born 1824, first death 1859. And I could hardly believe my eyes when I read he was murdered by a slave master!”

“Is that some kind of sick joke?” asked Sam. “If so, I'm not laughing. If it is for real, then how long has this illicit slave ring gone unnoticed by the authorities?” 

“We’ll find out,” she promised. “Maybe when we decipher the code numbers.”

“And before you think there are no women on the Killer List... stay with us after the break,” Jenna added. “The next one will knock your socks off.”

Joe hit the mute on the one television still on in his bar. He’d closed up after the last patron leaving just himself and three Immortals watching the international news feeds while waiting for dawn. 

“That confirms it is another CD, doesn’t it? The 1993 creation date,” said Amanda as she returned to the table.

“But our database didn't exist in '93,” said Joe frowning. “And it's online now anyway and the few Watchers whose assignments live outside of civilization use thumb drives.”

“The news hasn't made much yet of the Watcher names they've shown on television,” Duncan commented, a little surprised.

“Likely still too obsessed with the 'confirmed kills' line above it, but yeah…” Joe signed and continued, “the reporters will pay attention to us eventually.”

“Before I knew about Watchers,” Amanda said. “My first guess would be leaked criminal files, something from Interpol or an Immortal's personal hit list. I'm guessing all the bios have a Watcher’s name?”

“Yup,” replied Joe glumly. “Even the Immortals we don't have a location on or are too dangerous to follow closely have a Research Watcher maintaining their chronicle.”

“Immortals will be wondering what it means and they will begin asking around.”

“Thankfully, most Watchers on that list have been reassigned, left or died since 1993. Arnold is retired in Florida,” Joe said quietly as a commercial for a truck played on the television. They all jumped as the voice over loudly invited viewers to purchase a new Toyota Highlander. “He should be okay. Everyone else still active who might be known by name to an Immortal was sent into hiding by headquarters.”

“What about their families?” Duncan asked.

“Staying with friends or relatives as needed. Don't worry, MacLeod. After Kalas, we prepared in case something like this ever happened again. We'll be fine,” Joe said with a slightly uncertain air of non-nonchalance. 

From across the room where he was hovering over a laptop, Methos raised his voice to be heard and asked, “Is the news still only showing plain text files?”

“Yes,” Joe shouted back. “1993 date.”

Duncan asked, “Would anyone just copy off only that stuff, Joe?”

“Probably not.”

Methos brought his computer over to show them the portion of the list the media had posted onto the internet. “This doesn't look like the CD we were working on in '94 when Kalas murdered Don. This is probably the first draft. I’d forgotten we actually began in the winter of '93.”

Duncan asked, “Are there more detailed files on that disc that the reporters perhaps haven’t shared?”

“No, Don typed those bio headings while I wrote the first version of the program. I'm not sure if the word 'Immortal' or 'Quickening' even appears anywhere in those files. It'd be redundant since they were to go under an interactive heading.”

“The news says there are thousands of files.”

“Of course. One for every living Immortal, but it is woefully out of date. The newest Immortals won't be on it and many on the list are now headless or have moved house.”

“But not everyone,” countered Duncan. “Some people continue to use their name or latest alias and still live in the same city. Like Robert and Gina.”

“Good thing this info wasn't from '96,” Methos commented idly. “Otherwise they'd have an entry for Claudia Jardine and she's too famous for them not to make note of her.”

“Worse, her bio in the database today describes her first death as 'shot by Walter Graham to trigger Immortality.' So… the word 'Immortal' and even 'Quickening'  _ could _ be in some of the files,” added Joe. “I wouldn't rule it out.”

“And someone will manage to read them all eventually,” Amanda pointed out grimly. 

“I searched Don's home, his office and even his car!” Methos said in exasperation. “No one else knew we were working on the database.” 

“Where else could he hide a copy?” asked Amanda, trying to sound helpful. “Did he have a safe deposit box?”

“If he did, why would the disc only be found now?”

“Shakespeare and Company,” Joe blurted out in a sudden epiphany. “We sold the bookstore.”

“What for?” Methos asked. “Watchers have used it as a base of operations since it opened.”

“Sorry, Methos, but you were the only person willing to run the place after Don was murdered there. They closed it after you quit the Watchers and my bar replaced it as the base in this part of Paris.”

“They could have reopened the shop with Watchers who didn't know Don personally.”

“Yeah, except we got out of the bookstore business. Most small chains went bankrupt when digital books took off. We kept a few antique bookstores, but Shakespeare and Company got axed. We had to move with the times. Diversify our base fronts. My bar actually pays for itself,” Joe told them. 

“Why didn't the Watchers find the disc themselves if it was in the shop,” said Amanda. “Didn't they inventory its contents before putting it up for sale?” 

“I'm sure someone was supposed to,” replied Joe, “but who knows how thorough they were? Christine found a copy of the database hidden inside a picture frame on Don's desk. An earlier copy could have been anywhere in the building... inside of anything.”

Everyone looked at Methos and he sighed as he said, “I am not perfect. I searched every hiding place I could think of and I never came across another disc while operating the store front.”

“Perhaps it was inside a book cover?”

“I thought of that and searched every book that wasn't for sale. Unless you are suggesting Don would intentionally hide secret Watcher material where it could be sold to a customer?”

“Maybe it wasn't meant to be left there long. Like you said, the newer disc was inside a frame on his desk. I doubt Don had much time to hide things when Kalas showed up. If both discs couldn't fit inside the frame, then perhaps he had no choice but to hastily shove one on a shelf.”

“I wish Don had just saved himself and ran,” Methos murmured. “It wasn't as though Kalas was intentionally looking for things like a database, he was looking for any Watcher to torture information out of. Kalas didn't know the disc existed until he murdered Christine.”

Their heated debate ceased the moment the news reporters returned the screen. After summarizing what they were discussing for viewers who’d not heard the subject, the next file was indeed about a woman as promised.

A new file’s screen grab filled the screen.

_ Cassandra _

_ Known Aliases: Zhandra, Cassia of Posidaea, Sandra Grant _

_ Born: unknown; identified 742 BC _

_ First Death: unknown _

_ First Teacher: undetermined _

_ Original Cultural Affiliation: Bedawi _

_ Recent base of operations: New York, NY USA _

_ Occupation: model _

_ Status: active _

_ Confirmed kills: 73 _

_ Watcher: Melanie Hind _

“This is one of many files with confusing code numbers or simply has the word 'unknown.' Those 73 confirmed kills are scary,” Sam said. “We were lucky enough to catch up with a model name Sandra Grant living right here in New York.”

What proceeded next was a rolled clip of a different news reporter and his camera crew ambushing Cassandra as she left her modeling studio. Cassandra eyed the group like a hawk clearly not a bit fooled by the reporter's initial disinterested attitude as he approached. 

“Ms. Grant? Todd Barr with CNN,” the reporter introduced himself. “Are you aware of a list linking a person of your name and occupation here in New York to possible criminal activity?”

Reporter Todd produced a printout of Cassandra's file and handed it to her. Given that Cassandra was already aware of Watchers and had read such details about Immortals over Joe's shoulder when she and Duncan were in pursuit of Kronos, she was certain to recognize it as a Watcher file. Especially when the last line contained the word  _ Watcher. _

After reading the sheet, Cassandra calmly looked up and raised one eyebrow at the microphone pointing at her and asked, “Are you sure you aren't with the National Enquirer?”

“No ma'am, CNN,” he corrected her.

“These foolish notions are only fit for tabloids,” she said as she returned the printout to him and made eye contact first with him and then with the camera operator as she spoke. 

As they watched the remainder of the video clip of Cassandra as she entered a car waiting for her and driving away from the stuttering reporter, Duncan asked, “Did Cassandra just use the Voice on camera?”

“I think she did,” Methos replied.

“Can her ' _ these aren't the droids you're looking for _ ' act influence the audience viewing this clip, too?” Joe asked. “Or just the guy on her case?”

No one had an answer for Joe and they remained quiet as the news report continued.

_ Kiem Sun _

_ Known Aliases: none _

_ Born: unknown; Sung Dynasty, China _

_ First Death: 1276, fighting Kublai Khan's invading Mongol Army _

_ First Teacher: May-Ling Shen _

_ Original Cultural Affiliation: Chinese _

_ Recent Base of Operations: San Francisco, CA USA _

_ Occupation: alchemist, Buddhist Temple Priest _

_ Status: Active _

_ Confirmed kills: 132 _

_ Watcher: Janie Chow _

“A check of all the Buddhist Temples in and surrounding San Francisco did include one operated by a man named Kiem Sun. Our correspondent there attempted to interview him.”

The video that played next was outside the temple and as the journalists requested to speak with the proprietor, Kiem Sun himself stepped out. 

“Mr. Sun, are you aware that your name, location and occupation is on a list of thousands of people, full of disturbing references to murder?”

Kiem Sun stared at them unblinking. When he didn't respond, the reporter decided to elaborate. Only she didn't hand him a printout like the other reporter had to Cassandra.

“Our file describes an alchemist who fought Kublai Khan and has 132 confirmed kills. What do you have to say about that?”

Kiem Sun laughed without smiling or sounding happy. Rather it was long and deep, echoing in the courtyard. Even on camera the fear in his eyes was apparent. He backed up slowly and with a subtle signal, the other temple priests began waving the journalists back. As the doors closed behind him, his hollow laughter could still be heard.

The video ended and was once again replaced with the news anchors' studio.

“But that is not the end of the story. Police have since raided the premises. Apparently, they've had suspicions of illicit drug activity in that temple for some time and Mr. Sun's name on this Killer List was finally enough for them to obtain a search warrant.

“Though Kiem Sun was not present inside, authorities discovered what can only be described as a hastily destroyed laboratory.”

The photos released to the press did look like the alchemist was in too much of a hurry to dispose of it all. Shattered glass littered the tables and floor, various apparatus left wherever it fell, but there were no papers or computers. The next pictures were of the back garden where a large section of ground was obviously freshly dug.

“It will take time for forensics to discover what was being manufactured. The residents say they had no knowledge of what went on in what they claim was Mr. Sun's private lab and insist the garden held only legal plants. Police are bringing in cadaver and narcotics dogs to search the entire grounds.”

“That laugh was creepy. Defense mechanism? Or Is he insane?” Amanda asked.

“No,” answered Duncan, shaking his head. “They'll pursue him harder if they think he is a drug dealer. I warned him to stop working on that Quanla potion.” 

“Not everyone obeys what you say, MacLeod,” commented Methos. “At least he got out in time.”

“Next up is a name that might be familiar to law enforcement officials on the northwest coast. This one was actually brought to our attention by our colleagues in France.”

_ Duncan MacLeod _

_ Known Aliases: none _

_ Born: 1592; Scotland _

_ First Death: 1622; mortally wounded in battle with a neighboring clan _

_ First Teacher: Connor MacLeod _

_ Original Cultural Affiliation: Scottish _

_ Recent Base of Operations: Paris, France _

_ Occupation: martial arts practitioner _

_ Status: active _

_ Confirmed Kills: 119 _

_ Watcher: Joe Dawson _

“There are currently eighty-four people with the surname of MacLeod in France, none of which have the first name of Duncan. However, there is a former resident of Paris of that name suspected of being involved with several unsolved crimes over the last fifteen years. When speaking with a source who wished to remain anonymous, we learned that the same man was known to live part-time in Seacouver, Washington state. Our investigation there turned up an even longer list of suspicious links to crimes connected with the name Duncan MacLeod.

“Those Seacouver properties were sold several years ago and the name Duncan MacLeod has not shown up in police reports since.”

And that is when they showed a photo, probably taken from the last driver's license renewal he did in Seacouver using his real name, on the screen. Duncan put his face in his hands and sighed.

“Tahiti is sounding very nice right now,” Amanda commented as she blinked at the television.

“Couldn't agree more,” answered Methos. “This is a rather an unusual circumstance for you, Mac... your brand of justice being mistaken as criminal.” 

“The police won't understand why without learning about the Game,” Duncan admitted.

“Won't even then, no matter how many people you've saved. They'll lock us all up at best,” Amanda commented. She didn't have to say what the worst was. It was all on their minds. 

...

Of course, the news wasn't done giving them shocks. The next day, someone finally used the word 'Immortal' on television. 

It was said in jest, not meant to be taken seriously. Most people found it plausible that the files could be criminals, illicit customers, coded mob operation or even a hoax. But immortality? Not as believable when so many of the individuals had death certificates or could not be proven to exist. Especially the unusual names that no one would find in a telephone directory.

That didn't stop the morning news shows from running wild with the idea. 

The studio backdrop of the city was muted with screens. A group of smartly dressed women of various ages were seated on sofas with a collection of unmatched mugs on a low table.

“Can you believe some of these birth and death years from centuries ago right above modern occupations? Are we supposed to believe these folks are Immortal or something?” 

“That 'first death' line reminds me of that movie  _ Death Becomes Her _ ? Ever see that one, Madge?”

“The Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn comedy?”

“Yes, that one. In the movie, they had an ancient 'serum' or 'tonic' to regain their youth permanently. Even when dead, they still were sort of alive.”

“Think these guys will be willing to sell their fountain of youth?”

“Hollywood would buy it.”

“I wouldn't mind trying a sample myself. But to be serious, the 'confirmed kills' part of those lists is truly horrible.”

“Completely, Delores.”

“Oh, I just had an awful thought!” exclaimed the woman on the end and she put both hands over her heart in exaggerated fright.

“What, Jan?”

“What if they have to kill to stay young?”

“Like vampires?” Delores asked, half disgusted, half intrigued.

“I get what Jan is saying,” Madge declared excitedly. “Everyone agrees this reads like a customer list and one of the names, this Kiem Sun, now he's disappeared and they found the remains of this mystery drug lab he left behind. What if he was making new batches of an immortality serum?”

Delores grimaced again as she asked, “Like some kind of 'witch doctor dealer,' providing it to these other folks?”

“Keeping these people alive for centuries!” Jan finished for her.

“Those kills could provide a necessary ingredient to renew their youth.”

“How gruesome! Don't give me nightmares, Madge!” protested Delores.

“We'd know more if they'd release the rest of that disc. These simple files cannot be all there is to it. Which files did you find the most intriguing?”

“My favorite on the list is Marcus Constantine,” answered Jan. “I named my son Marcus, always loved the name Marcus, so I was drawn to read the file on this guy. Here it is.”

_ Marcus Constantine _

_ Known Aliases: none _

_ Born: 441 BC; Ostia, Republic of Rome _

_ First Death: 390 BC; killed during sack of Rome by Gallic Celts _

_ First Teacher: Flavius Sulla _

_ Recent Base of Operations: Paris, France _

_ Occupation: museum curator _

_ Status: Active _

_ Confirmed Kills: 132 _

_ Watcher: Victor Benedetti _

“There was a man by that name in Paris who was a well respected museum curator. He died suddenly in 1996. Could this be the same man? The name is unusual. How do we explain the line 'first death' 390 BC; killed during sack of Rome by Gallic Celts' without sounding ridiculous?”

“We don’t, Jan,” said Madge a little caustically as she sipped her mug.

As the ladies on screen began refilling their drinks, Joe sighed and said, “Well, at least Amy Zoll's name wasn't on that file. She replaced Benedetti. He was a Hunter working for Horton, in '94.”

“And now she watches me,” Methos said idly

“Despite your efforts to drive her away.”

“Hey, she can always put in for reassignment and save herself the trouble.”

Having sorted out their beverages, the women on the television resumed their discussion. 

“There are quite a few on this list without a surname,” Delores pointed out. “The one I found rather interesting is Methos.”

_ Methos _

_ Known Aliases: none _

_ Likely aliases: Metopholus, Haribu, Caratarix, Et Maru _

_ Born: Unknown, estimated before 3000 BC; first discovered 2109 BC _

_ First Death: Unknown _

_ First Teacher: Undetermined _

_ Original Cultural Affiliation: Unknown _

_ Recent Base of Operations: Unknown _

_ Occupation: Unknown _

_ Status: Active _

_ Confirmed kills: 302 _

_ Watcher: Adam Pierson _

After spending the last few days alternately alarmed and shocked, the Immortals hiding in Joe’s bar and Joe himself had grown numb. Both Amanda and Duncan had already seen their own files go up, so their reactions were anti-climatic to the news displaying Methos’ file.

“You included your own kill number in the database?” Amanda asked curiously.

“Don wrote that part, not me,” Methos reminded her. “And that isn't the number of heads I've taken. Stupid journalist didn't even pronounce my name correctly either.”

No one was diverted by Methos' complaining about the pronunciation. “Is that number too high or too low?” Duncan asked.

Eyes narrowed, Methos asked, “How many do you think I’ve taken?”

Joe and Amanda looked between Duncan and Methos curiously, but neither said anything.

“I think that number is high, though I get the feeling you’ve probably taken more Quickenings than I have,” Duncan finally said with reluctance. “When we met, you said you hadn't taken a head in two centuries, but over the next two years you took three heads I know about and were willing to take a fourth.”

“Do you want to compare him to your average, Mac?” Joe asked bluntly. When no one outright objected, Joe continued. “You haven’t quite reached 200 confirmed kills.  _ Yet _ , I should say after the spat of challenges you had over only a few years. But you've taken long breaks from the Game yourself and of course, you didn't take any Quickenings before you became Immortal. So, when averaged over your entire lifespan, it puts you a maybe four heads for every decade.

“If Methos has taken the same number of heads you have, he'd average only about three a  _ century _ . If he took just one per decade, he'd have 500 and very few Immortals are known to have taken that many heads.”

Duncan said tersely, “That's a scary thought.”

“Not at all,” Methos said, amused. “If I was as active as you are, I'd have 2,000 kills.”

Duncan looked a little ill, though it could be at his own 'activity' compared to Methos or the thought of Methos being like himself. “I'm glad you aren't so 'active' as you call it.”

Amanda looked alarmed herself and she said to Methos, “Your Quickening would bomb a city.”

“Nonsense,” Methos objected. “Anyone with that many kills would obliterate a country at least.”

...

On the third day, suddenly the idea of Immortals had apparently become old news. 

Internationally, the top story focused exclusively on a terrorist attack. The local news was consumed by Paris flooding. The only mention of the ‘Kill List’ was made in passing in regard to lawsuits for defamation of character and libel by real people whose names had appeared on the list.

“Well, how about that?" Joe said. "Methos, you were right."

"You needn't sound so surprised you know."

Duncan asked, "Right about what?"

"They actually did 'file it away with alien abductions and Elvis sightings,' exactly as you predicted,” Joe replied, giving Methos a wry look as he quoted Methos' own assessment when Kalas first tried to shop the Watcher CD. “Now the dust is settling, we will have to relocate panicking Immortals. It is a lot easier to watch you guys if you aren't looking over your shoulder.”

“The news can’t move onward so easily,” Amanda disagreed. “Sure, there is always some new crisis, sensation, scandal or natural disaster, but...”

“The notion of Immortals is over except for the conspiracy corners of the internet and a few serious detectives investigating real crimes. Provided no one is foolish enough to attract the attention of the world again, it will remain that way,” said Methos calmly. “Don’t tell me you are miffed to be deemed less interesting than celebrity antics?”

Amanda gave him a look of exasperation. “Of course not. I’m just saying there must be a catch. We aren’t that lucky.”

“Why can’t we be that lucky?” asked Duncan. “You know how fickle people are.” 

“You’ve spent a lot of time typing on your computer the past few days,” Joe pointed out suddenly. “Did you sue the news networks, Methos?”

“On what grounds could I do that?” 

“A bunch of publicly prominent people, who happen to be Immortal, independently pressured the networks to drop the story. Thing is, most of these Immortals are not friends. Some are enemies and some don’t know each other at all.”

Methos smiled and said, “What a happy coincidence.”


End file.
